


Four Times Rory Met Thirteen in a Bar, and One Time He Didn't

by brOken_records



Series: Old Friends [3]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Drinking, Gen, Mistaken Identity, Mostly Fluff, Some angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:14:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23273788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brOken_records/pseuds/brOken_records
Summary: “I’m Rory by the way, and this is my girlfriend Amy.”“I’m Jo Smith.”
Relationships: Thirteenth Doctor & Rory Williams
Series: Old Friends [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1673599
Comments: 35
Kudos: 134





	1. Prologue: Leadworth 2008

**Author's Note:**

> So this has been cooking in my mind for a bit, I love the idea of these two interacting. Figured I would actually post it since I'm about to have a ton of time on my hands. 
> 
> Any mistakes are my own. 
> 
> Please enjoy!

It had been a complete accident. Even many years later, the Doctor isn’t quite sure how or _why_ it happened. The TARDIS tended to avoid people and places that set them both on edge. Then again that was relative. The Doctor knew they had been present in the US at the time of the moon landing at least four times- and that was just considering recent years.

But anyway, she just needed a moment. A moment to think. Because between the regeneration, falling to earth, meeting new companions, being stranded without the TARDIS, facing Zim Shaw and then that whole business on the planet Desolation had left her exhausted. And the Doctor didn’t generally get exhausted. She blamed it on the regeneration. She just needed a stiff drink. That would work right?

Surely. She had seen it work on other people. Hopefully this new regeneration liked the taste of it better than the some of their previous regenerations. Thirteen distinctly remembered Eleven spitting his drink straight back into the glass. To Craig’s horror.

And so Thirteen found herself outside the nearest bar. It looked relatively lively, with music pumping out; some late 2000s pop song that she was sure Jack had been fond of singing. It would do.

Thirteen put her hands in her pockets and entered. The bar was clean looking, it’s patrons either dancing in the centre of the room or sitting at a table enjoying a drink. The Doctor walked over, carefully avoiding the dancing people, and sat at the bar, stretching her hands in front of her. 

The bar tender looked up from the glass he was cleaning, cocking an eyebrow at the Doctor in a silent question.

Put on the spot for a moment, the Doctor ordered a cocktail and a bowl of chips. The Doctor fumbled for her pocket, trying to find the psychic paper.

“Do you need to see my ID…?” she asked.

When no answer was immediately forthcoming- and her hand kept drawing a blank-, Thirteen glanced up only to find the bar tender giving her an odd look.

“No need, Miss” he said, still looking at her strangely. That ‘Miss’ sat oddly, just like when Yaz had called her ‘madam’- but she would get used to the term. In this body she did feel like a ‘she’. At least she thought so- she had always been a man before. Shopping with Graham, Yaz and Ryan had felt slightly strange. Not in a bad way… and not least because she normally picked her clothes out from the TARDIS wardrobe. The fact that she hadn’t been able to access the wardrobe had caused her no small amount of anxiety. She was quite glad to have the TARDIS back.

“Uhhh that’ll be £15.”

She mentally shook herself. 

“Right, of course,” she said, reaching into the opposite pocket and bringing out a Yo-Yo, a small bit of machinery that she had been meaning to fix to the TARDIS console, a biscuit and her sonic screwdriver before bringing out a small battered wallet.

She fished out the cash- while checking the currency and date stamp- and handed it to the bewildered bar tender who was still trying to figure out how the Doctor had fit all that into her pocket.

Thirteen fixed a smile as she put the items back into her pocket. Never knew when you needed a biscuit. Graham was always bringing sandwiches so it couldn’t be _that_ weird.

The bar tender wandered off to fix her drink, and so the Doctor took to staring at the marks in the table. Someone had carved their initials, and she wondered when they had done so, and who VP was. Vicky Parks? Vernon Potts? It wasn’t important. Her attention turned to other matters. She had seen her reflection on the TARDIS, but that had been brief.

Holding up her hands, the Doctor could tell that they were far smaller than usual, but that was just like her height so that wasn’t- that didn’t matter too much. She put up a hand, teasing out her hair, pulling a strand of it in front her face. Yep still not ginger. Ah well, that had been a wish for Ten and Eleven.

Moments later, the bar tender handed her the cocktail and chips. The Doctor thanked him before tucking in. To her relief, her taste buds had not changed so much that they no longer enjoyed chips. The cocktail was sweet, but also honey like. In a way that reminded her of the drinks you could buy at the Medusa Cascade bar.

The Doctor had nearly finished the cocktail when she heard a familiar voice to her left.

“I thought I might find you here.”

She froze. For a moment she thought that the voice may have been talking to her. But when the Doctor glanced over, the owner of the voice was looking at someone else, a woman who was also very familiar. She wondered how she hadn’t noticed.

“’Ory” the young woman slurred. “My Knight in shining armour…”

Even though the Doctor couldn’t see his face, she could picture Rory’s eye roll from the twitch of his head. The Doctor smiled despite herself, she had been on the receiving end of that look many times.

“Yeah, yeah let’s get you home.” Rory said coaxingly. Helping Amy up and out of her chair.

“Don’t wanna,” but Amy leaned on his shoulder and let him start to lead her out. They had just passed the Doctor’s stool when Amy stumbled badly, and the Doctor leaped out of the chair and was at her side than should be humanly possible.

Rory stared at her in askance, but Amy was far too out of it to notice.

“Need a hand?” she asked, trying for humour.

Rory seemed to assess her, and the Doctor wondered what he saw. She was of medium height, with short blonde hair, pale skin, dressed in a blue shirt and trousers, yellow suspenders and a light grey coat- nothing at all like the man Rory had once known. She hoisted up a smile and tried to ooze earnestness. Was that a thing this incarnation could do? Others had been able to.

Eventually Rory nodded carefully.

“Yeah, great, thanks” he grunted even as Amy suddenly tried to twist out of his grip.

“I didn’t get to finish my drink!”

Rory huffed, and exchanged a long-suffering look with the Doctor. The Doctor wanted to shake her head at Amy’s antics, but knew that this Amy did not know her. For all intents and purposes, she was a stranger. So she just smiled in a don’t-worry-I’m-used-to-this-sort-of-thing, expression. Even though the last person she had to take care of while drunk was Jack.

“Well, tough. It’s late and we need to get you back to the- I mean, back home.”

He urged Amy towards the door. The Doctor adjusted her grip to compensate and walked alongside. It was dark outside and starting to rain. Rory glanced at her again, then pointed vaguely down the road.

“My car is just down the road- I can handle her on my own if you want to go back…”

But the Doctor shook her head. It was a bit selfish, but she couldn’t resist.

“It’s no trouble.” She said, already heading in the direction Rory pointed.

“Right well ah, thank you.”

They were quiet for a moment before Rory sighed.

“I’m Rory by the way, and this is my girlfriend Amy.”

The Doctor spent the next seconds puzzling out a name. John Smith would not work right now. And Joan or Joanne, or any other abbreviation didn’t really feel right either.

Rory eyed her then, a little puzzled at the slow response.

Thirteen shifted Amy’s weight slightly before gasping: “I’m Jo Smith.” There that was fairly normal and unassuming right?

“Pleasure. I would shake your hand but that is probably a bad idea.”

“Probably,” the Doctor replied amicably.

“’Ory, I do- don’t feel so-,” Amy rasped from between them.

Rory glanced at Amy’s slightly green face, before spinning her gently round so she was facing the grass on the side of the foot path. He pulled her hair back from her face and waited. She leant over and heaved.

The Doctor carefully looked away, noting that this time she had a bit of a weak stomach when it came to bodily fluids. She noted that down for later.

A moment passed, before Amy raised her head. Rory pulled out a water bottle from somewhere and held it out to her. She accepted it gratefully and took a few small gulps, weary of throwing up again.

“Feel better now?” he asked.

“Much,” she said. The Doctor noticed that she did look less green.

“Ready to keep going?”

When she nodded, the Doctor took up her former position at Amy’s side.

Amy glanced at her and seemed to be seeing her for the first time.

“I don’t know you, do I?” she asked blearily.

The Doctor shook her head, even though she wished she could tell Amy. But she shouldn’t even be here.

“Nope not me. I must remind you of someone else.”

“Yeah,” she slurred a bit.

As they finished the walk to the car, Amy didn’t say much else. Thirteen was sure that she would have keeled over if it wasn’t for the two of them holding her up.

Rory’s car was an old honda, red, a little rusty but looked serviceable. While Rory fumbled in his pocket, the Doctor carefully leant Amy against the side of the car.

Moments later, the two of them had safely placed Amy in the passenger side of the car. Her head fell forward, and she began to snore lightly.

Rory reached across her and clipped the seat belt in. With a satisfied nod, he shut the door and turned back to the Doctor.

“Well, thanks for the help. We should get going.”

The Doctor airily waved it off.

“It was really no bother. Have a good night- both of you.”

Rory nodded a little awkwardly.

“And you- Jo was it?”

“Yes. See you around.”

And with that the Doctor wandered off. She did not look back.


	2. Leadworth, 1989

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi all. This chapter is set towards the end of Rory's stint protecting the Pandorica. 
> 
> As Rory is at the eye of the storm, time is happening all at once. To my mind, Thirteen has slipped through the gaps and ended up in the pocket universe accidentally. 
> 
> Hope you're all well and thank you for reading!

Rory sighed as he contemplated his glass of neon yellow whiskey. He probably shouldn’t be drinking the stuff. He was made of plastic but it hadn’t hit him yet. He wondered if it ever would. He had tested it but nothing seemed to make him even the slightest bit tipsy.

Amy would be surprised. She knew he wasn’t much of a drinker, unless the situation demanded it. And this situation did. He was _so_ close. He had even got a job at the museum that housed the Pandorica. But for appearances sake he may have to quit soon. Can’t have anyone getting the impression that he didn’t age. He wouldn’t abandon her though. In a couple of years he may yet get her back. He hoped desperately that would be the case.

He still remembered the laser hitting her, the way she had slumped in his arms…

Rory took a sip of his whiskey and shivered as it went down. He remembered coming here a lot when he was younger. In the future, he would often get dragged along as Amy or Melody’s sober driver. He hadn’t minded really. He had got to spend time with them, even if he ended up frequently guiding them home afterwards.

He glanced at the date and realised that Amy was currently a new-born baby, and somewhere Rory Williams was only a few months old. He raised his glass and made a small toast:

“Happy Birthday Amy,” he whispered before chugging the rest of his glass.

He was about to leave, when a woman sitting near him caught his eye. She was of medium height, with short blonde hair; she wore a light blue coat, a dark blue shirt, yellow suspenders- which would make the Doctor green with envy- and blue pants.

He wasn’t sure what it was about her, but she seemed very familiar. She also seemed to be trying to avoid his gaze. There was an empty glass in front of her, and Rory noticed that she seemed a little unsteady, as if she was about to fall off her seat…

The nurse in him jumped up as her body tilted to the right. He was at her side in moments, he helped steady her, his hands going to her shoulders. She jumped at his touch, and he watched her glance down at his fingers then up at his face.

“Hi, I’m Rory. What’s your name?”

The woman blinked, staring at him.

“’Oo mean you don’t… oh. You don’t recognise me. S’alright. ‘Appens all the time.”

Rory stared at her nonplussed. While she seemed familiar, very familiar- he couldn’t quite place her. He was trying but his mind kept turning up a blank. Blast his plastic brain! Focus, he thought. _Remember your training. Keep them awake, keep them alert._

“No, I’m sorry I don’t. But I need you to keep your eyes open for me, can you do that?”

He almost smiled as she widened her eyes comically, then seemed to wince.

“Uuggghhhh, my head feels like I’ve got a Sontaron banging on the inside. I swear I never had this problem when I was a man.”

Rory raised an eyebrow. _What the hell was a Sontaron?_ He cast it aside, must be something to do with the way time was messed up.

“Well that makes sense. Women tend to metabolize alcohol differently, so it’s unsurprising-“

She waved her hand again, a little dismissively.

“I know all that bit. Just didn’t expect it to hit me quite so hard, you know? Sure I’ll get the hang of it. Just need a bit o’ practice.”

Rory could see she was starting to list again. He braced his shoulder under hers and looked at her face. She looked a little green, and he’d been around enough drunk people to know that that is not a good sign. He exchanged a look with the bar tender who has clearly noticed too.

“We should probably get you home. Can I order you a taxi?”

She shrugged. “Probably best not.” She rubbed at her eyes. “I don’t actually remember where I parked the- my home…”

“Parked?”

“Yeah, daily inconvenience living in a box, really should install a homing beacon or something…”

Rory had to push that thought to one side. What would Amy say if she could see him now? Probably that he should escort this woman to his place. And he had to agree, even if he had no idea what her name was or why she seemed so familiar.

His momentary lapse meant that she stumbled forward, but he braced himself under her again, and began to carefully lead her across the bar.

“Let’s just get you outside first, shall we?”

“Sounds like a plan, Rory. You were always were full of good plans…”

Rory attributed that to alcoholism.

They left the bar, and Rory sat her down on the bus stop outside.

“Look this- this might sound strange, but I don’t feel- I mean… would you like to stay at my place for tonight?” the last bit came out in a bit of a rush and Rory could have kicked himself.

She gave him an appraising look.

“I just want to make sure you’re okay, and that you-“

“Thank you, I really do appreciate that; but I think I’ll just call my friend”- and she pulled an iPhone out of her pocket. And how weird was it that people were carrying cell phones in 1989?!

The woman dialled a number and held it up to her ear. Rory stood back a bit, not wanting to eavesdrop but also wanting to be close enough to catch her in case she started to fall over again.

The phone seemed to ring for a while. She shifted from side to side as if anxious.

“Hi you lot! Just letting you know that I’ll see you later. Probably tomorrow morning. You know how it is. I imagine you’re all sleeping. We did have a long day…”

She hiccupped a little.

“Well anyway, be seeing you. Try not to touch anything Ryan! And watch out for those butterflies! Very frustrating things.”

Rory shook his head at the woman’s antics, then looked up at the night sky and, not for the first time, wished he could see stars. Time would mend itself. He had to believe that.

There was a faint whirring sound that Rory couldn’t place, but a flying taxi zoomed past- and Rory remembered how long it had taken to get used to those things. But since he was at the eye of the storm so to speak, every _when,_ every _thing_ was happening all at once.

Moments later, the woman hung up. On instinct, Rory surged forward and caught her before she sagged again.

Rory checked her temperature; she felt as cold as ice. He reached for her arm in order to check her pulse, but she snatched it away. Smiling a bit when he stared in askance.

“S’turns out my friends are asleep. Can’t come get me. Don’t suppose that offer s-still open? I seem to be a little stranded.”

She looked incredibly awkward about asking.

“I- of course. My car is just a block from here.”

She nodded.

“Okay. Thank you for this Rory. It’s much apprecu- aprrech-“

“Appreciated?”

“Yep. That. Always were smart. Practical like. Good ol’ Rory.”

Rory ignored that in favour of walking down the road. As he walked the woman seemed to be humming something under her breath but for the life of him he could not parse out the lyrics. It was a moment before he got the impression that she was speaking in a different language, all curved consonants and long vowels.

Rory shook his head; she needed food, water and rest. Anything else could wait.

* * *

He brought her inside his small apartment. It wasn’t much, but it was decent. Had all the basics and since he was working a lot of the time and not sleeping all that much. He didn’t really need to. The kitchen had an oven that could also be used as a microwave, a pancake machine and for some reason a doohickey that made giant humbugs. He wasn’t sure why that had been invented, let alone why it was in his apartment. The skylight had been an unexpected delight for him, and if he adjusted the setting on a wall panel, the velvety black night sky would be reflected on the floor.

He kept wishing he could show it to Amy. Tell her how much he missed the stars. One could only see Venus now.

The woman didn’t seem to be coherent enough to comment on the state of his lounge- he had been meaning to clean. Once he’d got her settled, he microwaved his leftovers.

To be honest he didn’t need to eat. He never got the same urges he would get when he wasn’t made of plastic. And yet he got phantom aches and eating brought him a small amount of comfort. It had also been his habit to eat when surrounded by others.

He handed her the plate and she ate it slowly. Given the way colour started returning to her cheeks, Rory had a feeling that she hadn’t eaten in a while.

As she was eating, Rory made himself a cup of tea and sat opposite her.

The woman glanced up at him, then smiled a bit.

“This is good,” she said. “What did you put in this?”

Rory raised an eyebrow.

“Standard ingredients, but the trick is to add quite a bit of garlic.”

The woman nodded sagely, then looked at him.

“My name’s Jo by the way. I don’t think I said.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Jo. Are you feeling a little better now?”

Jo nodded.

“Much. I don’t think I’ve had something to eat in… you know I’m not sure how long.”

Rory stared at her. But she kept on eating, supremely unconcerned.

“Do you often skip meals?”

Jo paused for a moment.

“Not really? I just find that I don’t need to eat all that much.”

Rory’s nurse radar was glaring red, and he spooned a little more food onto her plate even while ignoring her affronted gaze.

“Sorry but I’m a nurse. You could have passed out in that bar you know. In fact, you still could. I’m just trying to make sure you get the carbs you need.”

“You really don’t have to-“

He glared at her, “I insist.”

She rolled her eyes but didn’t complain again.

“There is one thing that I think this could use though…” she said as she stared appraisingly at the collection of spices on his bench.

To Rory’s surprise she grabbed the cinnamon and sprinkled a generous helping on top. She glanced at him and almost froze at the look on his face.

“Uuuhh, I’m being weird, aren’t I?”

Rory shook his head.

“A bit yeah. But don’t worry I’ve met weirder. Knew this bloke once, my wife’s best friend, used to dip fish fingers in custard and call it _desert_.”

There was a funny look in Jo’s eyes when he glanced up, but whatever it was had disappeared by the time she spoke.

“Sounds like some bloke,” she said a little derisively.

“He was- wait is?” Rory shook himself, tenses weren’t important right now. As best as he could understand it, this was a sort of alternate universe. He supposed he would know more in about seven years. Just. Seven. More. Years.

“Can be a bit of a pain in the ass sometimes but he’s a good bloke.”

Again, something passed over her face, but it was gone the next moment.

“Indeed.”

Rory left shortly after, to sort out a bed for Jo. Once done, he went out into the hallway only to find her sitting in the kitchen staring up at the night sky. Rory hadn’t wanted to get a place in town. It was too close to where he had grown up, and so he lived on the outskirts. Just close enough so that if something happened with the Pandorica, he could be there in less than ten minutes. But far enough away that he could see past the skyscrapers and pollution, up into the night sky.

“Everything alright?”

The woman jumped a little bit, then looked at him.

“Yes, I’m sorry I just got distracted. I remember, when I was little, I was always looking up at the stars. I wanted to explore, to be _involved_ … I miss the stars. It’s weird not seeing stars.”

Rory looked at her in confusion. Rory had been there when the stars had gone out. When they had disappeared forever. He still caught himself trying to find the dipper, or Orion’s belt, or any of the other constellations he had seen while traveling with the Doctor. Jo was more plastered than he had thought. 

“… Stars haven’t existed for a very long time.”

Jo looked at him in the eyes, then shrugged.

“Right. You’re right. Course you are.” There was a pause, then she stood up. “Thank you for this by the way. You didn’t have to.”

“No problem,” he said as he led her down the hallway. “I’ve got you set up in the spare room, there’s extra blankets in the wardrobe if you want them.”

Jo glanced inside, then smiled at him.

“Thanks again.”

“Don’t mention it.” He said, heading back to his own room. “Good night, Jo.”

“Good night, Rory.”

* * *

He awoke later to the sound of birdsong. With a sigh, he got up. Rubbing his eyes, he walked down the hall to the spare room, only to find that it was empty. The bed had been made, and he was pretty sure the place had been vacuumed?? It was certainly neater than last night. He moved quickly into the kitchen only to find that his lounge had been vacuumed, his floor mopped… and was that breakfast on the table?!?!

“Jo? Jo, where are you? You didn’t have to do all this…”

He trailed off when he spotted a handwritten note on the bench top. It read:

_Dear Rory,_

_I am sorry to leave so abruptly, and without thanking you properly. It was incredibly gracious of you to let me stay- I shall not forget it. I did some cleaning, I do hope that wasn’t too presumptuous of me. And I find myself unable to entirely recall what was said last night. If I said anything to cause you distress, then I am incredibly sorry. I am not normally so hairbrained as to drink so much._

_In any case, I wish you well. You can do anything you put your mind to, Rory Williams and much, much more._

_Regards and best wishes,_

_-Jo_

_PS: Hang in there Rory, I’m sure you’ll see the stars again soon._

Rory dropped the letter and ran outside. It was raining. He stared through the gloom but of course there was no sign of her. 


	3. The Planet Andromeda, 5154

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rory needs a breather; he gets a little more than he bargained for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, here is the next chapter. It has been beta-read by the lovely Daydreamingdaisy, thanks again! 
> 
> This one is set after the 'Let's Kill Hitler' episode for Rory, and somewhere in the middle of series 11 for Thirteen. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

Following the whole Berlin incident, the Doctor had taken Amy and Rory to the planet Andromeda in order to cheer them all up. Rory had not been keen on the idea, but he had been overruled. Amy was delighted for the distraction, and the Doctor well, the Doctor had looked so crestfallen when Rory had said he wanted to go home.

So he had let the Doctor take them to Andromeda in the year 5054. It was the 12th Earth Colony, a planet that had six moons and 20 continents. The night sky was purple, instead of the usual black that Rory was used to. For once, the Doctor had decided to book them into a hotel room, as opposed to staying in the TARDIS like they normally did.

Normally a new planet would have excited Rory. But he only felt exhausted and lost.

He was aware that Amy was in the same boat, but he also felt like he needed to acclimatize himself to the situation before he could help her. And so he had decided to head to the nearest bar. He would have sought out a café, but at this time of night he figured none of them would be open. It had been a little tough convincing Amy that he would be fine, but she eventually relented.

_“No need to wait up,” he had said._

_“Rory, are you- are you okay?”_

_He gave a small laugh._

_“Are you okay? Honestly, I don’t think either of us are...”_

_“You know it wasn’t his fault-“_

_“Amy, he knew.” She paused for a second._

_“What do you mean, stupidface?”_

_“Remember when you told the Doctor that you were pregnant?”_

_Amy nodded slowly._

_“Well he scanned you- without your permission I might add- and the Tardis computer kept giving him different readouts. Your pregnancy was phasing. One moment it registered your pregnancy, the next it didn’t. And he said nothing.”_

_“Well, he didn’t want to alert the- Madam Kovarian that he was on to them-“_

_Rory snorted, then he carefully stood up and kissed Amy’s forehead._

_“He waited to make his move. We all went to investigate the Flesh because he wanted to figure out how it ticked. He left you there, and he said nothing of his suspicions and I- I can’t forgive him for that. Not yet.”_

_Amy looked at him._

_“Okay, I get what you’re saying. I’ll see you tomorrow morning then, stupid face.” And she kissed him. “But,” she said, “remember that I am here. That River- our daughter- is alive and well at this moment.”_

_He nodded, “I will. How could I forget” he said smiling._

_Amy kissed him again, then finally let him walk out the door._

_“Oh and don’t stay out too late!”_

Rory snorted to himself. It had always been Amy and Mels who had wanted to stay out late. He had just been there to spend time with the pair of them. At the age of 18, they had been very busy; Amy had been dating and Mels- well she had been _busy_. He _really_ didn’t want to know.

In all honesty, Rory was well aware that this was probably a bad idea. Not the drinking part. He knew his limits. But he was choosing to go to a bar, on his own, on an unfamiliar planet, even though he was already very pissed in a different sense.

The hotel clerk had directed him to a bar called _The Laronic_. It was apparently one of the few that catered to a human pallet. Experience had taught Rory to be weary of new planets and its cuisine.

The bar itself was typical, and that suited Rory just fine. He ordered a ‘ _Sirius Sunrise’_ and took a seat at the bar.

Five minutes later, a glass tumbler filled with yellow liquid was placed in front of him. He took a sip, it tasted like a pineapple flavoured whisky.

He did have good reason for his feelings. Between that whole business in 1969- including the Doctor getting _shot_ \- being stuck on a carnivorous planet that wanted to devour anything that came near it, the rebel flesh, learning that Amy had been a flesh copy -which the Doctor had failed to mention-

_-he did tell you eventually._ Rory’s mind whispered.

Yes, he had. But not in time. What kind of husband was Rory that he hadn’t known Amy wasn’t _Amy?_ That she had been kidnapped… And that wasn’t even mentioning the sight of the Doctor raising his sonic screwdriver and reducing Amy’s clone into white mess. The Doctor had interacted with the flesh. They were more than just copies, more than just objects to be discarded at will. The Doctor had known this. He had said…

The Doctor had been a giant hypocrite. Granted it’s not like he wasn’t used to the Doctor doing this. The Doctor’s morals did seem to get jumbled up if someone he cared about was in danger-

And wasn’t that just the crux of it? Rory had watched the Doctor disintegrate Amy’s copy, and he had been unable to do anything.

The Doctor on his hunt for Amy, Rory could admit that it had scared him. Well and truly. He had seen the Doctor sad, yes. A little scared, maybe. It was hard to tell with him. He was liable to pretend that nothing phased him ever. Ecstatic? Plenty of times, man never stopped for a breather some days. But never had he seen the Doctor so angry. Even when they wouldn’t tell him about the real reason they were in 1969.

But knocking out a whole fleet of cyberman, calling allies to arms, were all things that Rory never thought the Doctor was capable of. He could admit he was annoyed at River. For not coming immediately. He knew why. Well _now_ he did. But that did not make it any easier. She was his daughter. River was his _daughter_.

His mind reeled and he took another sip of whiskey. It burned as it went down but he welcomed it. Ever since the Doctor had jumpstarted the Universe, alcohol had affected him the way it was supposed to. He was no longer plastic. He had retained his memories. All of them.

_Demon’s Run_ had been a mess. They had been so close. He and Amy had thought they had been holding their child, but it was not to be. Rory had been duped twice, and in the same way. His baby, his daughter, Melody Pond, River Song had already disappeared. He never even got to touch her.

Watching the baby disintegrate onto Amy had been nothing short of traumatic. He had held her closely. Even as tears dripped down his own face.

_“Rory- she, she-.”_

He had rested his chin on her shoulder and choked out:

_“I know. Amy, I know…”_

Amy had been furious with the Doctor. Well so had he. She had yelled though. Amy rarely yelled at Doctor. Except for that time the Dream Doctor had messed with their heads…

River’s revelation had shaken them all to the core. Especially since she could not tell them anymore than she already had. “ _Spoilers”_ she said. Well that hadn’t mattered to him.

He regretted that he had not been able to go to River in that moment. But he sought her out later.

Rory wondered why she could not have told him that she was Mels. She was one of his best friends. Someone he had grown up with, cared for like a sister.

Rory groaned. A sister. She had been family to him before he even knew who she really was…

Rory shook himself and went back to nursing his drink. He was just on the final dregs and admitting to himself that he may need to start making his way back to the hotel soon- when he noticed two people were eyeing him curiously. Normally this would not be unusual. But the native peoples on this planet were not humanoid, and these people looked human and were dressed in 21st century Earth clothing.

One was an older white man with greying hair, he wore a plain jacket and pants. His companion was much younger; Rory thought that she might have been of South Asian descent. She wore a leather jacket and jeans. She noticed him looking and raised an eyebrow. Rory’s gaze shifted back to the bar, but something told him that they were still watching. Probably his long years of experience in the Roman cohort.

Rory finished his drink, then turned away from the bar and headed for the door. He had had a long couple of days, and he did not trust these people. He surreptitiously checked his forearm, but there were no sharpie marks. No Silence. He had failed to notice that his movements were a little slow, and that he was feeling woozy.

He was nearly at the door when the ground rushed up to meet him. He heard the sound of chairs scraping the floor as he blacked out.

_Amy was going to kill him…_

* * *

To say that Rory wished he had never left the TARDIS was an understatement. He felt as though he had gone toe to toe with a whole legion. Which was saying something because he had done that before.

“Shhh, he’s waking up!”

The person’s voice was unfamiliar, and it had an English accent. Rory panicked for a moment. He had been at the bar. And he had been leaving. Why was he lying on his back? Why was he seemingly surrounded by people? Britney Spears’ _Toxic_ played in the background and he inwardly groaned.

_“Toxic, a traditional ballad!”_

The Doctor had some _really_ strange ideas sometimes.

Instincts honed by long hours guarding the Pandorica meant that he was tense. A part of him wished he had his sword. Another, larger part of him wished for Amy or dare he say it, the Doctor.

It got very quiet around him, and Rory knew that whoever was around him, were watching closely.

_Shit. Nothing for it. Can’t be any worse than running into an Amy who didn’t remember who he was…_

He opened his eyes, and almost shut them again. Jeez he had forgotten how bright the lights were. He groaned, out loud this time. Rubbing his aching head. The bar was still filled with people.

_How much had he had?_

Dim memory recalled quite a bit. _Amy was_ definitely _going to kill him._

“Hey, mate. You feeling alright?”

Rory blinked and focused on the man to his right. It was the guy from before. The man who had been watching him. Feeling a little frazzled he nodded.

“Yeah, I’m okay.”

Rory tried to push himself up, but his head spun in protest. He stilled and noticed that there was another man on his left. He was much younger than the first, Rory thought he might be of African descent.

“Here, take this.”

The voice was not too familiar, but when Rory glanced up, he remembered seeing this woman in a bar much like this one was. And yet that had been in _1989_. A bastardized version, but 1989 all the same. If the Universe had been reset, then she should have been put back in her proper place. Where she belonged. If that was the case, what was she doing here?

“Jo?”

He slurred, highly concerned.

The people around him froze a little and stared at her.

Jo shrugged and gave a small impish smile.

“Really Rory we need to stop meeting in bars. Not a good look if you ask me. Now take this, please.”

She held out a bunch of hangover pills that Rory knew could be found in the TARDIS’ medical room. But he knew for a fact that this type of hangover pill didn’t exist until the 61st century. This woman was impossible.

“Rory, relax. These are just hangover pills. Do wonders for a headache. I’m not sure how much you had, but Yaz and Graham told me that you fainted clean off your feet. Quite an achievement.”

“H- how are you here? Where did you even get these? What-“

Jo held up a hand.

“Look I can understand things are confusing for you right now. But I need you to calm down and take this.”

Someone outside of Rory’s field of vision scoffed. He turned his head slightly, behind him was the young woman from earlier.

“Doctor,” she said, even as Rory turned back to face Jo. “You are giving off all the stranger danger vibes. Do you know this guy?”

It was only because he was watching Jo’s face that he saw it twist into a wince. _Doctor. She had said Doctor._

Rory tried to muster the brain power but all he could remember was something Jo had said, seemingly a very long time ago…

_“Uuggghhhh, my head feels like I’ve got a Sontaron banging on the inside. I swear I never had this problem when I was a man.”_

_“Sontaron.”_

_“When I was a man.”_

He remembered the bright yellow mist that had surrounded the Doctor just before he had been killed on Lake Silencio. Remembered River trying to explain it later in the diner.

_“Time Lords have this trick. It’s a way of cheating death. It’s called regeneration. Rewrites every cell. Recreates a Time Lords genetic makeup. But you see, the Doctor was shot again in the middle of his regeneration cycle.”_

_River swallowed._

_“So he couldn’t complete it. I’m sorry Amy, Rory. There’s no coming back from that.”_

He also remembered watching Mels regenerate into River. Had regenerated into someone who looked completely different… It made the conversation he and Amy had had with her that much more poignant.

Rory stared at Jo, really looked. She was quite short, white, with bleached blonde hair and sharp eyes. She was dressed in striped shirt, grey jacket and blue trousers. Complete with _yellow suspender_ s.

_“He sounds like some bloke.”_

But her face had twisted derisively and at the time, Rory hadn’t been sure why. Now he recognised it. The Doctor, the one he had known for years had worn it frequently. It was self-loathing, it was regret, it was _guilt_.

The Doctor watched him watch her. There was one thing he knew for certain-

_“And in fairness, the world was ending.”_

_The beach flashed before his eyes. The astronaut stepped out of the water and shot the doctor… Gold dust seemed to swirl around him, then the astronaut shot him again._

_The Doctor collapsed in the sand even as Rory dimly noticed that there was a cloying feeling in his chest…_

-This woman, this version of the Doctor shouldn’t exist.

“Doctor?” he choked. There was an emotion in his chest. But he was unsure what it was.

The woman, Jo, or the Doctor or whatever she wanted to be called smiled sadly.

“Hello Pond.” Her smile was back but this time it was self-deprecating. “I’m sure you have a bunch of questions- you lot always do. But I wasn’t kidding about that hangover cure. You’d think a nurse would know better.”

Rory mustered enough to snort incredulously.

“You’d t’ink a _Doctor_ would also know better...”

“Touche.” And she handed him a pill and the water. “Would you please just drink this? Amy and River would kill me if they knew.”

Rory nodded absently, knowing that the two of them would also be shocked at him meeting a future version of the Doctor they all knew. He took the offering, chucked the pill in his mouth and drained half the bottle.

He knew from experience that the cure didn’t take long to take effect. Sure enough, his vision became less cloudy, his headache had subsided, and his throat was no longer sore. The two men on either side of him hadn’t moved, but they seemed to be keeping a close eye on him anyway. He wasn’t sure why. He was reasonably sure he wouldn’t faint again.

He leaned back against the seat he was in. For the first time, Rory wondered why they were still in the bar. Wouldn’t it have made more sense to take him to this Doctor’s TARDIS?

He waved these thoughts aside and his gaze settled back on the Doctor. She looked satisfied and sat down carefully opposite him. The woman sat down on her other side.

All four of them seemed to be watching him. Something that made him uncomfortable, he shifted, then nodded at the three people he didn’t know.

“Uh, thank you for helping me. Clearly, I don’t know my own limits,” he said. Rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

The Doctor smirked, crossed her arms.

“Nah, I think you just forgot you’re not made of plastic anymore.”

This proclamation was met with more staring, but Rory was unbothered. He raised an eyebrow at the Doctor.

“You really can’t talk you know.”

The Doctor’s let her head fall to one side before nodding slightly.

“Fair point.” Then she clapped her hands together. “Right, introductions! Rory this is Yazmin Khan, Graham O’Brien and Ryan Sinclair,”- she enthusiastically gestured at each person in turn, and Rory wondered how he missed that she was the Doctor- “my companions. Guys this is Rory P- er Williams. He used to travel with me about oh 1000 years ago. Give or take a few centuries.”

Rory goggled at her. _That_ put things in perspective. Sure, he had lived for about two thousand years, but he had been made of plastic. Frozen in the body he was in, stuck in a bastardised pocket universe. The Doctor was so much older now and she acted like it. There was a sort of calmness that he had never associated with the Doctor he knew. She was still tempered by sadness, but it was different somehow.

“Pleased to meet all of you,” Rory said, shaking their hands in turn. He knew that the Doctor had had companions before him and Amy, but he never expected to meet companions from the Doctor’s future. Never mind a future version of the Doctor.

And that reminded Rory of all the reasons he was mad at the Doctor. He joked with her easily enough. But he was still pissed, possibly enough to snap at her. He reached for the water again and took a sip.

“So Rory, what year are you from?”

“2012,” he said, taking a sip from his drink. “What about you guys?”

Yaz seemed to glance briefly at the Doctor before answering Rory.

“We’re all from 2018.”

Rory raised an eyebrow.

“You certainly have a thing for 21st Century Earth, Doctor. I feel like I should be worried.” He turned back to the three humans and asked quietly: “Can you tell me who the next US president is? The Doctor has been a little too good at letting my wife and I away from spoilers.”

The Doctor shook her head in askance.

Yaz, Graham and Ryan froze a bit.

“Do you mean the election for 2012?” Asked Yaz slowly.

Their faces concerned him a lot, and he stared at each person in turn. Well wasn’t _that_ reassuring.

“Yes, I meant the 2012 election.”

“Oh, that’s easy,” said Ryan. Helping himself to some chips. “Barack Obama wins. The next one however…”

Ryan gave a pronounced wince.

Rory thinks he’s better off not asking any more questions about the future.

“So you travel with the Doc?” asked Graham.

“Yep. He’s- uh-“

The Doctor waved a hand.

“It’s fine Rory, really. That version of me did go by male pronouns.”

Rory nodded and carried on.

“Yeah, he brought us to Andromeda, because my wife loves visiting new planets. Can’t get enough of them.” He sipped at the water that the Doctor had brought him.

“Where is she at the moment?” asked Yaz.

Rory waved a hand a little carelessly.

“Probably trying to keep the Doctor occupied.” He grinned, “It’s a full-time job.”

“Tell us about it, mate. The other day she decided to revamp the toaster. Even though I told her time and time again that it was working _fine,”_ said Graham.

The other three laughed even as the Doctor looked slightly miffed.

“I feel I should take offence to that,” she said primly.

Rory shook his head and grinned.

“I’m glad some things don’t change. I remember this one time he decided to cook Amy and I a full course meal. Only the TARDIS was in a bad mood and hid all he appliances…”

* * *

Eventually the group of them trouped back to this Doctor’s TARDIS. He had spun around, mentally cataloguing the differences between this TARDIS and the one he was used to. This one wasn’t quite as bright, but somehow just as whimsical.

The TARDIS had also hummed when he had entered.

Rory was never sure what they talked about for the rest of the night. It was very rare that he could talk to anyone about his adventures, except for Amy.

At around 2am local time (the Doctor had explained that this planet had 16 standard daylight hours instead of Earth’s 12), Amy called Rory. He couldn’t blame her really. This was a new planet and he had a tendency to attract trouble. As he picked up the phone, Yaz, Ryan and Graham all took their leave. Muttering about it being a long day and they needed sleep. They waved at Rory before disappearing.

“Amy really I’m okay. Met some people at the bar and they invited me to a party at their place.” He glanced around the quiet TARDIS that was so different to the one he was used to. He wasn’t lying per se. Just stretching the truth a little bit.

_“Really? That doesn’t sound like you. Are you sure you don’t want us to pick you up? Assuming the Doctor actually pilots the TARDIS properly.”_

Rory heard a loud “ _OI_!” in the background, which made him smile despite how angry he still was.

_“You promised that you would take us to Rio. And we still haven’t been!”_

Some grumbling followed this.

“No really, it’s okay.” He looked across the dining table at the Doctor, who was fiddling with what looked like a smoothie machine. Just like his did. “I’m having a good time. I really needed to just, feel a little normal for a couple of hours. You know?”

Amy sighed.

_“Yes, I do. Well let us know when you’re… heading back.”_

She understood. As Rory knew she would. He had no doubt that she was just as drained as he was, she was just reacting in a slightly different way.

“Sounds good. I’ll make it up to you tomorrow. We can go out somewhere nice. Somewhere quiet.”

_“Alright, stupidface. I’ll see you soon.”_ Rory could hear the smile in her voice.

“See you soon. Love you.”

_“Love you too.”_

Rory hung up.

“Thank you,” said the Doctor. “For not telling her. Not sure how she would have reacted.”

“Yeah I’m still processing myself,” he said. Then he struggled a moment, looking around the familiar kitchen in the TARDIS. He had spent so many mornings in here. It was barely even different from this morning. There were a few new appliances on the bench that he had not seen before.

He drank from his tea and was interested to note that the Doctor had apparently remembered how he liked it.

“Why didn’t you tell me? I know that I didn’t know about regeneration back then, but you could have explained. Maybe then I wouldn’t have been so shocked when- when Mels regenerated into River. Or maybe not. I certainly wouldn’t have been as shocked when you failed to regenerate at Lake Silencio.”

And Rory glared at the Doctor. She had lied to him. To his face. He had met this version of her before and she had never said anything. Pretended she was someone else. If he hadn’t worked it out, would she have said anything?

“Doctor, I watched you die. And I don’t think you-“Rory gulped. “I am mad. So mad at you for so many things. For not telling me that Amy had been taken, that she was pregnant… hell I’m even mad at you for crashing into Amy’s shed when she was seven… Even though I know it was an accident.”

Rory looked at her closely. She wore an expression that he rarely saw on the Doctor’s face. It looked like she was trying to keep her thoughts to herself. Her eyes were wet, and she was frowning slightly. _She didn’t understand. At least not yet._

The Doctor is his friend. He’s not sure when that happened, but it was the case. They had started off wrong footed and awkward, but Rory liked to think that they had moved past that. But was that the case on the Doctor’s end? The Doctor talked all the time. There were moments when his Doctor- the tweed and bow tie wearing clutz- could not seem to stop. For anything. It drove Rory to distraction sometimes.

But Rory had grown to care. It may have been in the middle of running for his life. He certainly didn’t see the Doctor the way that Amy did. She nearly fell over herself trying to impress him- or at least she used to. He’s starting to think that since that whole period where Rory hadn’t seen the Doctor, that her attitude towards him had changed somehow. That he wasn’t just a magician who ran around the Universe in a small blue box.

That he was a person. That he had likes and dislikes, feelings, thoughts. He wasn’t a god, or someone to put on a giant pedestal. He was, after all, just a being. One who was alien- sometimes not just in name. The Doctor wore a bow tie and had been known to wear a fez at odd moments. Plus this Doctor was wearing bright yellow suspenders. Well Rory supposed all those fashion choices were better than the tattered suit he had first shown up in. He had looked like he had been dragged backwards through a bush and he swore there had been singe marks on it. _Hang on…_

“Hold on… you crashed into the shed. Amy told me about it. There was smoke and everything. The library was in a different place. Yellow _dust_ -well Amy described it as being dust- was coming out of your mouth…”

“Rory…”

He came up to her, slowly. Quite conscious of the way she seemed to shift a little uncomfortably. This one didn’t seem as touchy feely as the one he knew. He wondered if that changed with each regeneration.

Rory took her hand, slowly, giving her plenty of time to stop him and was struck anew at how cold her skin was. He remembered trying to check her pulse in the pocket Universe. Back when he thought her name was Jo.

_“A bit yeah. But don’t worry I’ve met weirder. Knew this bloke once, my wife’s best friend, used to dip fish fingers in custard and call it_ desert.”

_“He sounds like some bloke.”_

“You had just regenerated. That’s why you crash landed. That’s why you… said you were still cooking. Doctor- I feel like I’m repeating myself- but why didn’t you say anything? I get why you didn’t when you first landed. What with Amy being so young, but later…”

He vaguely noticed that she hadn’t responded yet. But he had taken to staring at her hands. He somehow felt that if he looked at her face, she would curtail this conversation quickly. He didn’t want that. He needed this. And he felt like she did too.

_“Oh that’s rubbish. Who’s that then?”_

_“That’s you… How do you not know what you look like?”_

_“Busy day…”_

“Doctor, how many times have you regenerated?”

“A few,” and she sounded a little choked. “Rory it’s happened enough that I know how to deal with it when it happens. It’s not a big deal.”

This time Rory snapped a bit. He looked at her directly in the eyes.

“No, you don’t get to think that. You had just _died_ , Doctor. That’s not-“

And then Rory couldn’t contain himself.

“Can I- can I hug you?”

The Doctor seemed to pause, as if no one had asked her that in a very long time.

She nodded.

Rory wrapped his arms round her. As she rested her chin on his shoulder, Rory tried to recall the last time he had hugged the Doctor.

It had been Utah. Right after he and Amy had got off the bus.

This might be the first time he had initiated it. She smelled like oil and something metallic that Rory had always associated with the TARDIS.

“That is not something that should ever be normalised,” he said, closing his eyes. Willing her to get this. If there was one thing he had learnt about the Doctor- any Doctor- is that they had no self-preservation instincts.

The Doctor snorted.

“Rory it’s a part of my people’s biology. I have always been used to it.”

Rory shook his head.

“Then can you explain how you’re still alive? We burnt your body. You shouldn’t exist right now. You had us all watch. I’m very angry about that by the way! You can be a bit of an ass sometimes, you know that.”

She snorted again, but she didn’t pull away.

“I know. Rory I- I am so sorry.”

He looked at her closely.

“Actions speak louder than words Doctor. Can you promise me that you won’t try to fake your death again?”

She did not answer him, in fact she avoided is gaze completely. A different tack then.

“How many times have you regenerated since I saw you last?”

She huffed.

“Twice.”

“Oh.”

“He was a white-haired Scotsman. I like to think Amy had something to do with that.”

“She would get a kick out of that.”

The Doctor stared at him, then smiled.

“She definitely would.”

They both paused as they thought about Amy. Rory knew he would have to tell her eventually, but was it selfish that he wanted to spend a little more time with this Doctor? Without his wife? He didn’t get a lot of time with the Doctor that wasn’t fraught with danger.

“Radiation poisoning.”

Rory paused and stared at the Doctor.

“I’m sorry, come again?”

“S’how I died. Just before I crashed into Amy’s shed in ’96. I was caught in a radiation chamber, and I absorbed it to save the life of someone I- cared for.”

“I see.” Rory looked at her for a bit longer. “A previous companion?”

She sniffed, took a step back and seemed to be looking out the TARDIS doors, into the pouring rain. He frequently saw the Doctor look like this. Especially when he was talking about a previous companion.

“Not exactly. He only got one trip. But he was the grandfather of one of my… dearest friends. Donna. And he thought the world of her. He, I guess he got me to open up. At a time in my life where few people ever could.”

She looked at Rory and smiled a bit.

“You actually remind me of him. You were always able to call me out. Get me to stop. To rethink, to try something different. I don’t think I ever thanked you for that Rory.”

Rory shifted uncomfortably. He remembered how caustic he had been with the Doctor in the beginning.

“It was nothing. You would have done the same for me.”

There was something in her gaze that Rory wondered at. She stepped towards him again, hugged him tightly then kissed him on the cheek. He stared at her.

She shrugged.

“This version of me isn’t quite as ‘huggy’ as the one you’re used to. I promise it’s nothing personal. It’s just that the regeneration between us didn’t really like hugs at all and this one doesn’t always welcome touch. But I feel like you needed one.”

“I did, yes.” He squeezed her back. Then he pulled away and eyed her.

“Will I see you again? I think putting another message in a field is a bit far, plus it’ll probably attract the other version of you. I mean not that I mind I just… It’s hard keeping Lake Silencio a secret from him. And with you I don’t have to,” he finished lamely.

The Doctor pursed her lips for a moment, then grabbed a pen and paper from her pockets- which Rory knew for a fact were much bigger than they looked.

“I don’t normally do this, but from what I know of the future…” here Rory looked at her sharply- “Well you do somehow find yourself in difficult spots. And if you’d ever rather not call Tweed, here.”

And she wrote a number on the slip of paper.

“Keep this secret though, okay? And you may want to make sure you don’t touch the Doctor you know for awhile. Touch telepathy is a little unpredictable. Don’t want him seeing more of his future than he already has.”

Rory nodded but the fact that the Doctor had a phone number was still mind boggling.

“Uhm, okay. Do I want to know what you mean by the future-“

“Spoilers, Rory. No, I’m not telling you anything. And you can’t tell Amy either, not even about me surviving Lake Silencio. She can’t know about that yet. Promise me, Rory.”

He scowled unhappily. She was asking him to make a promise, but she couldn’t promise him.

“Fine, fine. I won’t say anything,” he said incredibly grudgingly.

“Well I guess I’ll see you around then Doctor. Ah, they’ll be here soon. You best make sure they don’t see you…”

“Already on it,” she said, hands resting on the console. “Bye Pond!”

“See you around, Doctor!”

She gave him a quick salute, snapped her fingers, the doors closed, and that familiar wheeze sounded out.

_“I keep telling him that the TARDIS is not supposed to make the noise. He leaves the brakes on. I’m surprised she doesn’t shock him every time he lands.”_

“Good to know that somethings never change,” he muttered.

Rory walked back down the road to the hotel room he was currently sharing with the Doctor and Amy. The hotel room had a lovely view of the green ocean, and it also had a skylight.

He let himself into the room, inside the TARDIS stood with its doors open. He could see the Doctor sitting on the couch, fiddling with… something. He couldn’t immediately see Amy.

“Good to have you back Rory,” the Doctor said. “How was your night?”

“Good, good. Met some people, and I was glad to have a drink. Since the TARDIS doesn’t stock it.”

He heard Amy’s snort from inside the TARDIS.

“I have told you time and time again Rory, the TARDIS just doesn’t like it. Probably to do with a previous companion. I can’t exactly change her mind you know.”

Rory shook his head. Same story every time.

“So which planet are we going to tomorrow?” he asked.

“He said Rio,” called Amy. “But he has threatened to hit the TARDIS with a spanner, so I feel like it’s a wasted attempt.”

“Oi! It’s not my fault the TARDIS is a little cantankerous. Almost like she- but that can’t be right. Rory you didn’t happen to touch any alien matter, or something did you?”

The Doctor glared right at him.

“Nope don’t think so. Except for my drink.”

The Doctor rolled his eyes.

“Probably just a fluke. Did I ever tell you about the time-?”

And the Doctor was off again. But Rory had to admit that he wasn’t fully listening. He watched the Doctor himself and looked out for all the little things that Rory had seen in the other Doctor.

Rory found himself wishing he could hug the Doctor, but he remembered the other Doctor’s warning. Later. He would hug the Doctor later. In the meantime, he would try not to destroy the fabric of space time. In the meantime, he would work on not being angry at this Doctor for things they hadn’t done yet.


	4. Leadworth, 2012

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thirteen is concerned about the things left unsaid in the aftermath of Apalapucia. In a break from tradition, she makes an effort to track down Rory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is chapter 4. In keeping with what makes sense for me, I will be using ‘she/her’ pronouns when I am referring to Thirteen specifically, ‘he’/’him’ when referencing a specific Doctor with male pronouns, and ‘they’ when I am talking about all/several reincarnations of the Doctor. Hope that’s not too confusing! 
> 
> This chapter is set before and after 'The Girl Who Waited' for Rory, and just after 'The Witchfinders' for Thirteen. As you can see from the word count, this one ended up being a lot longer than the previous chapters. 
> 
> I hope you're all staying safe in these trying times. 
> 
> Please enjoy!

_-Rory_

_Rory watched his wife break down. Honestly, he had been a fool for not seeing it before._

_The Doctor was her best friend. And she had watched him die, unable to do anything about it._

_Should he tell her the truth?_

_The Doctor’s wish to keep Amy in the dark had been one that Rory had backed up, but grudgingly. Rory was used to being shunted off to the side when it came to the Doctor and Amy. Sure, he knew that they both cared for him, but he had felt second best to the Doctor for a long time. He was working through it. The Doctor was the reason why they had adventured around the universe, Rory could see the appeal. But there was a selfish part of Rory that wanted to keep this new different Doctor to himself._

_But the belief that the Doctor was dead was hurting her. Rory could see that. It wasn’t fair of him to ignore that. He tried to picture the situation in reverse; if Amy had known that the Doctor had survived and hadn’t said anything. How would he feel? Hurt and a little betrayed by them both. The Doctor was his friend too._

_He thought of the Doctor’s face when she had asked him to keep quiet. She had seemed desperate. He didn’t want to go against her wishes, but in this situation he would. Because the Bowtie wearing Doctor had sent letters out to them all. Had seemingly wanted them all to witness his death. And while the Doctor that he had met only recently did seem to regret that, it wasn’t fair on Amy. It wasn’t fair on River for that matter._

_Rory shook himself internally. His wife was staring brokenly at the box she had kept since childhood. The box that had been brought out all the time when they were kids. The one stuffed with puppets made to look like the ‘raggedy man’, with pictures of stars and planets, with a clay TARDIS that Amy, Rory and Melody had made when they had been ten…_

_There were tears in her eyes. Rory knew exactly what he could say to help her feel better. Sure, she would be mad. He understood that. Hell, he had been angry at the Doctor too. But he had been able to talk that through with a far more reasonable Doctor than the one Amy knew. That one was liable to sweep issues under the rug, to pretend like everything is fine until it wasn’t. The one he had met, the one who had originally introduced herself as Jo, she had seemed awkward and uncertain, but she had also seemed like she wanted to make amends for the people she had hurt in her past._

_And she would- starting with Amy._

_Rory knelt in front of his wife, cradling her cheek in his hands._

_“Amy, there’s something I need to tell you. You won’t like it, but you need to know…”_

_The words were not easy. Once they were out, he waited for her response. He waited for a very long time._

_“Why didn’t you tell me?” she whispered._

_He gently took her hands._

_“Because I gave my word. Because in a moment of selfishness I agreed with the Doctor,” he paused, staring at their hands. “But I can’t stand by my words. You need to know. The Doctor survives Lake Silencio. I’m not sure how. But they do. I’m only sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner.”_

_He made to remove himself from her presence, give her some space to work through the bombshell he had just dropped on her._

_She stopped him with a look._

_When she spoke, he could hear the leashed anger in her tone: “I think you had better start from the beginning, Stupidface.”_

* * *

_-Thirteen_

The Doctor really hadn’t meant to run into Rory on Andromeda.

Honestly. She had known that her past self, and Amy and Rory had been there. But Yaz had been so keen to go and see Andromeda, with its tall mountains that seemed to touch the purple sky. The Doctor had been unable to say no. She never would have thought that they would find themselves in the same bar as Rory. She was glad to have seen him. She really, really was. More than she had expected. Sure, she had seen him in 2008 and again in the pocket universe (another place the TARDIS had brought her to by accident. Okay, so she had left the shielding down. Again. She didn’t know she would fall down that rabbit hole again…) But back then he had had no idea who she was. And that had hurt. She wasn’t sure why. Most people reacted that way when they regenerated.

She still didn’t expect to run into him again.

It was a half-way reasonable assumption.

Okay there was always a 30% chance of meeting a previous version of herself. A 40% chance of meeting a previous companion. And a 7% chance of meeting a future version.

After all, there had been at least 5 different versions of the Doctor running around during the Moon Landing. It was just an occupational hazard. Plus, she had done her best to ensure that she didn’t run into any past versions. Never ended well. There were always awkward questions and sad looks. Especially when previous companions were involved. They always wanted to know where they were. And as much as she had loved every single one of them, she couldn’t tell them. And it wasn’t just because of the time stream. It hurt her too much. She never forgot them. They all had a special place in her hearts. But there were some goodbyes that were too raw.

It was why she avoided funerals. And weddings for that matter. They were just so final.

In any case, she knew that she shouldn’t be here. Leadworth in 2012. But she remembered the way Rory had reacted after the Apalapucia incident. She couldn’t just ignore his feelings on the matter. She was well aware that 11 had never brought it up again.

She tried to tell herself that she was just checking up on him. She really wasn’t very good at this emotional stuff. But she was trying. Surely that had to count for something?

She knew from her patchy and defensive memories of that time, that Rory had demanded to be brought back to Leadworth. That he had overrun the Doctor’s protests. That he had rushed out the door before the TARDIS had properly landed. That Rory had not said goodbye.

_The Doctor remembers Amy looking back._

_“I- I don’t really know what to…”_

_Eleven waved at her in a rare moment of forethought._

_“It’s fine Amy. I’m- I’m really very sorry that- that happened I-“_

_But she shook her head._

_“Later, I think. There’s been too much today.”_

_There was a pause._

_They remember that older Amy. And their hearts pound._

_“Right. Of course,” Eleven blusters. “I’ll see you later then.”_

_Amy nodded jerkily._

_“Rory will be down at the pub later. He’s going to want to watch the football. You should join him.”_

_She doesn’t wait for the response, simply slips out the door._

_It is a request. One that the Doctor can’t fulfil. At least not yet-_

The Doctor shifted awkwardly outside one of the Leadworth bars. You would think that there wouldn’t be so many of those, but apparently there were three.

The Doctor had already checked the other two and had not seen Rory anywhere.

This was the last one she was checking. If she didn’t find him here… well that was ok. She would make a point to track him down later. But she could not avoid this.

She thought of Rory’s face before he had left the TARDIS all those years ago. Of Amy’s words before she too left. The Doctor could make this right.

She carefully opened the door to the bar. It was just after 8, so it was fairly rowdy. It was a nice bar, as far as bars went. Quite plain, but homely. There were three large tv screens that showed the night’s game. Her gaze passed disinterestedly. Previous incarnations had been interested in sports, but this version hadn’t yet found a sport that fit. Except maybe sprinting.

She was about to give up on the search, when she spotted a familiar figure slumped at the bar.

He seemed to be nursing a whisky.

The Doctor sighed and marched up to his side. The bartender raised an eyebrow at her, she shook her head and tilted her head at Rory.

The man nodded to her gratefully, then turned back to wiping down the bench.

She sat at his side, then put a couple of hangover tablets in front of him.

He glanced sideways at her, there was recognition in his dull eyes.

“Of course you’d show up here… Amy said that you might,” his tone was a little slurred. But he had the presence of mind to scoop up the tablets and swallow them. “But I don’t think she meant _you_ specifically.”

The Doctor winced.

“No, probably not. Would you prefer to talk to him?”

She asked, making a point not to look at Rory directly.

_“Can you change back?” Rose’s voice from long ago echoed unpleasantly._

Rory paused, fiddled with hands. There was a dull roar from the other occupants. Obviously, someone had scored a try, or was that a different game? She shook her head. Not important.

“No… at least, not right now. Prob’ly wouldn’t have gone well.”

The Doctor would like to think she had more faith in her past self, but she knew Eleven hadn’t tracked Rory down. It was time to address the elephant in the room.

“Perhaps not. I am so sorry though. I should have been honest with you from the start. I should have done an atmosphere check or something before we had all left the TARDIS…”

“Would you?” Rory said, his voice slightly cutting. “Wouldn’t that take all the fun out of it?”

The Doctor opened her mouth to reply, but she didn’t get the chance.

He waved her off, hunching down.

“That was a little uncalled for,” he said.

The Doctor didn’t say anything for a moment. She glanced around the bar. It was slowly filling up. Soon there would be people wanting to sit in their seats.

She turned to Rory.

“You know, a bar is not always the best place for conversation,” she said.

Rory also glanced around, then grimaced.

“True, but I don’t think I could move just now. Let you know when the room stops spinning.”

The Doctor rolled her eyes.

“Right, well in the meantime I’m taking you back to the TARDIS.”

“What, hold on, no I’m going back home-“

“Normally I would be all for that. But it’s later than you realise and I’m sure Amy would rather that you didn’t show up sloshed in the middle of the night. Besides that, you look like you haven’t slept in days.”

Rory shook his head.

“Rory, I owe you. Please let me do this for you.”

Rory eyed her properly, then his sighed.

“Fine. But I need to tell her that I’ll be staying the night somewhere else. Or I’ll never hear the end of it.”

The Doctor nodded in acknowledgement.

Rory got out his phone and called Amy.

Rory winced in response to whatever Amy said.

“No need. Listen Amy…”

The Doctor drifted away from Rory while he made the call. She didn’t want to hear him lie to his wife. Even if Rory was doing it at her request.

She was trying to avoid the fact that Amy was on the other end of the line. Right there, but she could not bring herself to ask Rory for the phone. To ignore the fact that she had asked him not to tell Amy anything. It felt wrong. If Amy had known, well there was no doubt she would be screaming at the Doctor. There was a man who tried to flirt with her, but the Doctor politely turned him down.

She drifted back to Rory only to hear him say: “I don’t think you have to worry about that, Amy. I love you, see you tomorrow.”

Rory hung up, then nodded to the Doctor.

“She’s fine with it.”

There was a pause, in which Rory tried to stand on his own two feet but the Doctor noticed that he seemed wobbly.

“Doctor, would you be able to… give me a hand please?”

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, then moved to help Rory stand. They slowly made their way outside, past the bar crowd, who parted for them at the sight of Rory, and then out onto the street.

The Doctor glanced at Rory, he seemed a little less wobbly. She had sympathy for him, she really did. She only wondered why she kept finding him in bars. It never used to happen while he was traveling with Eleven. Or maybe it did and she just hadn’t noticed… ?

It wasn’t that unusual. That version of her (and several others… well she liked to think she had got slightly better, but you can never be too sure. She could admit that she was at least a little biased) had been pretty oblivious. Especially when it came to Rory.

Then one particularly memorable occasion came to mind and she thought about what Rory had said at the time.

“ _We seem to make a habit of hanging out like this…”_

_At which point Eleven had looked at Rory strangely._

_“What do you mean by that Rory?”_

_“Uhh, nothing. It’s not important.”_

Only it had been. And running her mind through the times the Doctor had come across Rory in a bar… she shook her head. Not the time.

She could only go forward. And right now, Rory needed down time in the worst way. He needed to relax, to take his mind off Apalapucia- another thing that she really couldn’t change.

“It’s bloody cold,” Rory said. Thrusting his hands into his pockets.

“It’ll be warm in the TARDIS. Come along Pond.”

Time Lords ran at a higher temperature than humans did, so the cold night air didn’t bother her. She pulled Rory closer to her. He was family- although she was pretty sure he didn’t know that yet. This Rory had not yet been present for the Doctor and River’s wedding. But she was going to treat him as if he had. She owed it to him.

Thirteen really hoped that the TARDIS hadn’t got rid of Rory and Amy’s room. She hadn’t seen the door for a while, but that didn’t mean the TARDIS had deleted it. Hopefully. Poor Rory needed a place to sleep and the Doctor was not sure if she was aware enough to mentally construct a new room tonight. Sure, the TARDIS could help Thirteen. The TARDIS didn’t mind helping, especially if it was for a companion that she liked, but his old room would be more comfortable for Rory.

Putting her thoughts to one side, she turned down another empty alleyway, or at least it looked empty. Thirteen sensed the TARDIS’ presence curl around her mind. Relief coursed through her veins, she wondered, as she often did, how she would manage without the TARDIS. Probably crash and burn- well more often than she already did.

With a click of her fingers, the doors to her currently invisible TARDIS swung inwards. 

Rory snorted.

“Did you finally work out ‘ow to make her invisible Doctor? Only took you a couple o’regenerations.”

The Doctor rolled her eyes in response.

“Yes I did. And that’s enough cheek, Pond. Let’s get you inside.”

Sometimes Rory reminded her of River, which made sense given that they had all grown up together. The thought used to bring her a small amount of pain. But these days it had grown less gaping. Maybe it was because of Bill, maybe it was because Twelve had got to see River- to spend time with her as a proper spouse. Whatever the case, she would eventually have to tell Rory about what had happened to his daughter. He deserved to know- but not right now.

She brought Rory inside, before pushing the door closed with her foot.

Rory dazedly glanced around the console. The Doctor knew that he was still getting used to the changes.

Yaz glanced up from her seat near the Time Rotor. The Doctor raised an eyebrow, but before she could comment on the fact that Yaz was standing there with a cup of hot chocolate, Yaz spoke.

“Hi Rory,” she said cheerfully.

Rory smiled and waved at her, “Hey Yaz. How you doing?”

Yaz stared at him a little more closely.

“Doctor, did you get him drunk?”

She squawked in response even as Rory laughed.

“No, I found him like this. Long story, but I should really get him to bed. Which is where you should be, Yaz. We’ve had a long day.”

Yaz shifted a little uncomfortably.

“I know, I’ll- I’m just drinking my hot chocolate then I’ll head to bed. Promise.”

The Doctor nodded, even while trying not to think of how hypocritical she was being. Rory of course was thinking along those lines.

“Doctor you really can’t talk… I’ll bet things haven’t changed that much since I travelled with you…” he slurred. “Bet you don’t know the last time you had a proper night’s sleep. And- “ he said loudly before the Doctor protested (in fact Rory pointed a finger in her face which was just _Rude_ ) –“don’t tell me you don’t need it. I’m a _nurse_. I found books on time lord biology. Your… well I can’t say it right now. But the point is: you still need sleep occasionally! Promise me you’ll sleeeeeep.”

There were entirely too many eee’s in that last word for the Doctor to take him seriously.

“Rory-“

“Doctor, as a nurse I am telling you that you need to take better care of yourself,” he said very firmly.

The thing about Ponds- any Pond- is that they have the ability to make you feel absolutely guilty. And that is exactly the way the Doctor was feeling right now. She had no clue if this was something that all the Pond’s had naturally developed together or if had it been something that Rory had passed on to River and Amy by osmosis. That was beside the point though. She eyed Rory’s index finger and wondered if she would ever regenerate into someone who didn’t have a tendency to go on tangents.

“Oh, very well,” she said, glaring at Yaz who was clearly struggling not to laugh at their antics. “But come on-“ The Doctor just stopped herself from calling Rory ‘dad’- “let’s get you to bed.”

She hoped he hadn’t noticed her pause.

By his lurching towards the stairs, he hadn’t. They headed down the corridor, then made a left, and there stood the door to Rory and Amy’s room. She had not seen it for some time, and last time she’d checked it had been situated near the swimming pool. The TARDIS was clearly being her helpful self and the Doctor was eternally grateful to her.

“Here we are,” she said.

The TARDIS chimed gently as she pushed open the door, Rory awkwardly stumbled after her. The hangover pills would do their work, but for best results he needed a proper night’s sleep.

Inside the room was exactly as they left it. There was a double bed in the corner (you could say that the bunk beds had been _debunked_. That had earned them a patented Amy glare), a dresser near the door, panoramic windows that showed a different view each night (tonight it showed the night sky as viewed from the planet Women Wept), a very plush TARDIS blue rug, a walk in wardrobe that was much smaller on the outside and an old, ornate bookcase containing some of the couple’s favourite books from the TARDIS’ library.

The Doctor had not been inside for centuries, and she worked hard to keep her emotions off her face. Rory hadn’t asked, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t thinking about it. About what had happened to him, to both of them. And she could never tell him.

“Are you alright to-“

Here the Doctor waved vaguely at the bed. Words failed her.

Rory eyed her, then nodded vigorously.

“Yeah, I can manage,” he said lamely.

The Doctor inwardly wondered how the two of them had ever learned to communicate at all. She smiled at Rory and nodded.

“Alright, well, I’ll see you tomorrow morning. No need to get up early, I can get you back to whenever you want. Amy will never know”

Rory eyed her sceptically.

“Do you remember how many times you promised to take us to Rio, only you never have?”

The Doctor winced. Too many times.

“I’ll let the TARDIS take over,” she amended.

Rory failed to stop a snort, Thirteen glared at him.

“Uh huh,” the Doctor grumbled to herself. “Anyway, _good night_.”

“Wait Doctor, there’s something I need to-“

Rory paused and the Doctor looked back at him, perplexed.

“What is it Rory?”

“I,” he visibly gulped, then mumbled: “I told Amy.”

The Doctor felt frozen. _Oh no._

“I told Amy about you. That you survived Lake Silencio… I’m sorry. I couldn’t lie to her. She was grieving and I…” Rory seemed to be visibly struggling with himself.

The Doctor’s hearts seemed to twist in her chest.

Rory closed his eyes.

“I couldn’t let her grieve like that. Not when it wasn’t true. Not when I knew the truth and she didn’t.”

“Rory,” she said gently, trying to calm her ragged breathes. “You don’t know what this could do…”

But Rory shook his head defiantly.

“I don’t care, Doctor. I only care that she knows. That she isn’t out there grieving for someone who is alive. Someone who won’t even tell her. And don’t think I’ve forgotten about Apalapucia. She was my wife, Doctor. A version of her, but she was still Amy. Why didn’t you tell me that it wasn’t possible?”

Rory collapsed on the bed like his strings were cut and looked glumly up at her. The Doctor wondered how long he had been wanting to talk about this. Probably ever since he had found out the truth.

Why couldn’t he understand that they hadn’t liked it anymore than he had? Didn’t he know how much they cared, about both of them?

But it wasn’t about her was it? Not really. Not right this second. Amy and Rory had watched a version of her die. She was no stranger to death. She knew what it did to a person. And Eleven had faked his death, made them watch, then lied about it afterwards.

No wonder Rory had told her. Amy was probably a little mad at her still. The Doctor closed her eyes, unspooled that feeling in her gut that told her what was a fixed point, that let her automatically sense what time it was at any given moment, that guided her when she needed to remember that what she fought for was bigger than herself.

There was no change. Not really. The Pond’s knew sooner than they had originally, but they had not told their Doctor. Had not told him that there was a future version running around. He couldn’t know. At least not yet.

As long as he found out at the right moment, there would be no change to the Doctor’s timeline.

The Doctor sighed, brought herself to the present moment. She sat down on the bed beside Rory and reached for his hands.

“I understand why you told her. Honestly, I probably would have done the same thing in your shoes. It could change the timeline- but not too much. As for not telling you… I was selfish. I have no excuse. I should have treated the older Amy far better than I did. I am so sorry that I put you through that. And maybe someday, I can apologize to Amy as well.

“And if it’s not too much to ask… I think we should leave it at that tonight. The hangover tablet does work better when you’re sleeping.”

Rory considered that for a moment, then nodded.

The Doctor turned to leave but Rory wasn’t finished. “Thank you for… well, tonight.”

She paused, half turned to look at him. He seemed very interested in his bed spread.

“Think nothing of it, Rory. You’ve done the same for me,” she said as she left.

* * *

Contrary to popular belief, the Doctor does in fact, sleep. Just not as often as humans need to. She found it hard to find the space and the time to take a break, so she had a habit of sleeping for about 4 hours a week.

Be that as it may, she managed nearly 8 hours that night. She would blame Rory for that. Rory and his habit of throwing them for a loop, but also making them stop and think. Rory had been a rock when he had travelled with Eleven. As she had mentioned the last time she had seen him, he was one of the few people who would hold them accountable. She wasn’t ashamed to admit she needed that.

A part of her was also worried about the possibility of seeing Amy again. Honestly, she shouldn’t be worried. But as always, she was afraid of rejection. This version of her was very different to the last one.

She got up and decided that she would make her companions breakfast. It had been a long time since she’d had that many people staying in the TARDIS- may as well make the most of it. Rory probably wouldn’t be here long.

She made blueberry and chocolate pancakes, poached eggs, sausages, waffles, a smoothie made from fruit only found on a planet about 2 thousand lightyears from Earth, tea, coffee and fish fingers and custard (in case Rory was feeling nostalgic- she probably wouldn’t touch them).

She was just putting the mix into the waffle machine when she heard the sounds of her companions getting up. Graham was the first to arrive. He mumbled a hello, before grabbing a cup of coffee from the bench (the coffee had been made in a mug that kept itself hot through an ingenious metal that keeps anything hot, hot; and anything cool; cool. Donna had actually brought a whole set of them…) and sitting down to read a book.

She put a plate piled with food in front of him and left him to it.

Next was Yaz and Ryan, who showed up yawning and still in their pyjamas. They thanked the Doctor even as they sat at the table. They were talking about a football game- ~~~~

“…It’s weird though, right? Because this game happens in a weeks’ time, but my zapped phone is picking up notifications for it. I’ve had to block it.”

The Doctor turned towards Ryan, with two full plates of breakfast. She shifted and apologized for spoilers. Ryan smiled at her even as he took a plate.

“Thank you. No Doctor it’s fine- just strange.”

Yaz also smiled as she took her plate. Blueberries were her favourite and she started picking them off.

The Doctor had just turned back to the stove when she sensed Rory enter the room. She turned around to face him. He looked much more refreshed than last night.

“Morning Rory,” she said, as she put a plate of food and a cup of coffee in front of him. Two sugars, topped with whipped cream. Just the way Rory liked it.

The others greeted him too.

“Rory! When did you get here?” Asked Graham.

Rory shrugged. “Last night. I ran into the Doctor, in a bar- story of my life. And well here I am. She basically kidnapped me.”

The Doctor rolled her eyes, even as she grabbed a plate for herself and poured herself some tea. Coffee would have her bouncing off the walls, best to avoid it.

“If I hadn’t, you would have gone home with a roaring headache and I’m not sure Amy would be too impressed with that.”

He spotted the fish fingers and custard and his face immediately lit up. He grabbed a fish finger and jubilantly started dipping it into the custard.

The other three stared at him, gobsmacked.

“Rory, mate. Don’t take this the wrong way but you have appalling taste buds.”

He looked up from the fish fingers and smiled at Ryan.

“You can blame the Doctor for that. They introduced me to fish fingers and custard. You might think it sounds ridiculous. Admittedly I did too when I heard about it for the first time. But I have developed a fondness for it.”

“It looks gross,” said Yaz eyeing it with distaste. But she did reach over and try one.

“Huh,” she said. “Actually, they aren’t bad.”

“Told you,” said Rory delightedly.

The Doctor smiled, tried one, and promptly wished she hadn’t.

“Blagh! Damn taste buds.”

Rory looked at her curiously.

“Do they really change with every regeneration?”

“Not every regeneration. This one just doesn’t seem to like fish. Sorry Rory.”

There was an uncomfortable feeling in her gut that she strove to ignore.

* * *

After breakfast, Yaz, Ryan and Graham all decided they wanted to return to their proper timelines. They wanted to see the latest Sci-Fi film. For Rory’s sake, she didn’t mention which one.

Thirteen actually managed to fly the TARDIS to the right spot, something that all versions of her had had a problem with. Ever since they had thrown the instruction manual into a supernova. Funny that.

As for Rory, well he also needed to be dropped home. Probably soon but she could tell that Rory wanted to talk to her about last night. She couldn’t blame him. She piloted the TARDIS to Leadworth 2012, but she made sure that the ship was invisible.

Rory and the Doctor stood in the console room. There were times when the Doctor filled the space with words, trying to distract or merely to pass the time. But right at this moment, she didn’t feel like she needed to. She felt perfectly comfortable, in this quiet space with Rory.

There hadn’t been too many companions who had made her feel that way.

_Donna with a pleading look on her face._

_“Sometimes I think you need someone to stop you.”_

“Doctor, I…” He trailed off then sighed. “I continue to be really, really bad at this. Even while sober apparently.”

“Rory-” she said.

“No, no, let me finish. Please?”

He looked at her imploringly.

The Doctor slowly nodded, crossed her arms. Rory stared at the opposite wall.

“Right I’ll just come out and say it. I remember what I said in that pre-rebooted universe. And I didn’t… Doctor I want you to know that I really didn’t mean it that way. I was jealous and lonely, but that doesn’t mean… You know I think of you as more than just my wife’s best friend, right?” he said the last part in a rush, still not looking at her directly.

_No, the Doctor didn’t know._

The traitorous thought was there in her mind. Because the Doctor and Rory, in any regeneration, had always seemed close. But the slightest provocation or disagreement always spun them out of alignment.

_“You don’t know how dangerous you are to other people when you’re around.”_

_Burning Pond eyes as Eleven-_

_-shut the door in old Amy’s face. Her eyes still haunt their nightmares even now._

_“You’re turning me into_ you, _” Rory had spat with loathing._

_“A wise man must always fear the anger of a good man.”_

_The Doctor was not the one the song talked about. Rory is rarely angry. But when he is…_

She mentally shook herself, she had been quiet for too long.

“Rory, of course I know that,” she lied. _“_ But right now… you are understandingly very upset with me. With him. Whatever. It doesn’t matter. You have every reason to be. I don’t hold that against you. But I want you to know that I am so sorry. I had no right to put you in that situation. Yes its less ‘fun’ as you put it last night, but I should be far more careful when I land on an unfamiliar planet. To check to see if there are harmful virus’s about, or poisonous plants, or… I failed both of you. I- I can’t even begin to apologize for that Rory.”

Rory still wouldn’t look at her, but she could see his knuckles clenching. Then, slowly, giving her plenty of time to stop him, Rory reached out and took her hands. The Doctor let him.

“And I want _you_ to know- once and for all- that you are like a sibling to me, but I’m still getting used to that. Bear with me.”

The Doctor opened her mouth but couldn’t get anything past the lump in her throat. There had been precious few people who had ever considered the Doctor family, and even fewer that she had considered family in turn.

Rory leaned back and looked the Doctor in the eyes.

“I hear that, and all I can think is that your past self and I never discussed Apalapucia again. And that- that really doesn’t sit well with me Doctor. I was angry yes, but that was no reason to…”

There were tears streaming down her face, and she could feel it.

“I’m still mad. So, so mad. She may have been older than the Amy we know, but she was still _Amy._ But I want to make this better. I feel like you should do those things- weather checks and all that. Safety is important, Doctor.”

He glared at her to drive his point home.

The Doctor shifted where she stood, before nodding. Many companions would have said that it was a long time coming…

“I’ll do my best Rory.”

“But Doctor, I will fix this. Just watch me. As my daughter always says: time can be rewritten. And I feel like a big part of that is to apologize to those we have wronged.” He looked at her closely. “Did you mean what you said about talking to Amy? You can’t exactly apologize to the other version of her, but she’s the closest you’ve got.”

The Doctor closed her eyes. Could she do it? It wasn’t often that they broke one of their rules. The Doctor tried to avoid companions once they left. Their companions were all worth breaking the rules for. But the idea of doing that for every companion they had ever known… well it broke something in her.

_“I carry them with me. What they would have thought, and said, and done. Make them a part of who I am. So even though they’re gone from the world, they’re never gone from me.”_

_… Was that the sort of person she wanted to continue to be? Someone who ran from their problems? Ran when things got difficult? Wasn’t that what this had been about in the first place? Helping Rory, breaking the cycle._

She eyed Rory.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Of course, I meant it.”

* * *

The Doctor would never forget the look in Amy’s eyes when she saw Thirteen for the first time.

She looked the Doctor up and down, stared at her hard.

 _Oh dear,_ thought the Doctor. Amy had always had a good memory for faces.

“Hold on, I’ve seen you before. Weren’t you the woman at the bar back in…”

She stared at her. The Doctor wanted to squirm, but she struggled to stay still.

“2008? Yep, that was me.”

Rory was looking at her in askance, but then he just shrugged.

“Come in, I think we have a lot to talk about.”

He ushered them inside.

At first, it was awkward. Amy was very formal with Thirteen and seemed to have difficulty looking at her. The Doctor tried not to let it bother her too much.

Amy was currently making tea. Her movements were clipped and jagged, her mouth in a hard line.

Rory kept glancing between the two of them. He tried to shrug apologetically at the Doctor. But she understood. She had experienced the mingled grief and rage whenever the Master died and subsequently came back from the dead. Somehow, they were always surprised. As if all the different versions of herself, had made themselves forget that the Master had a habit of coming back. Perhaps it was because each time it happened, they worried it would stick.

Eventually, Amy served the tea. The Doctor took hers gingerly. She could see that hers was black. She didn’t have the heart to tell Amy that her taste buds had changed again.

The three of them were seated on the couches. Amy and Rory were sat beside each other, the Doctor opposite.

“So,” said Amy, who still wouldn’t look at Thirteen. “Why were you at that bar in 2008?”

The Doctor took a sip of her drink and worked to keep her face from wincing.

“…I wasn’t looking for the two of you, if that’s what you mean.”

The Doctor could read the hurt in Amy’s eyes.

“Not that I didn’t want to see you, it’s just….”

She scrubbed a hand across her face. How could she explain?

“It’s just that I don’t go _back_ very often. I- I missed both of you. That’s why I was in Leadworth. But I never thought you guys would be there. I was just taking a trip down memory lane.”

Amy looked sceptical.

“If I asked, would you tell me what happened to us?” Amy asked gently.

The Doctor’s head snapped up and she stared at the Ponds. Rory seemed resigned. And well, she could understand that. The man had died many times already.

Her hearts were cracking in her chest.

“I can’t,” she choked out. “You know I can’t.”

_“Raggedy man- goodbye.”_

_You lived great lives. You adopted a son. You loved him dearly. He is a fine young man. You were together, now and always._

The Doctor looked out the window. She could picture the look in Amy’s eyes, the crease in Rory’s forehead. As she thought of Rory, she remembered that Eleven had never got the chance to say goodbye to him. The thought hurt.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

That was Rory.

When she was confident that she wouldn’t start bawling immediately, she looked back of them. She snorted.

“I couldn’t have…”

“Why not? Would that have created a rip in time or caused a catastrophe?!?!”

There was more to this. More than just hurt that she had not revealed herself back then. She knew this. Which is how she managed to temper her voice.

“No,” there was an itch in her eye that she struggled to ignore. “Look, back then I had stormed back into your life without so much as a by-your-leave. And then, without warning, I left again. Rory… I had only meet you once. Briefly. And not in the best of circumstances-“

She looked at him meaningfully.

Despite everything, he cracked a smile.

“Yes, I believe you insulted my looks. Cheers for that Doctor.”

The Doctor rolled her eyes at his light-hearted comment. But something about it filled her with warmth.

“Exactly. Back then we were not as close. Back then all those times we spent together were in your future… It’s like, like seeing a photograph of one of your friends- only its from years before you knew them. They haven’t filled out yet, in more ways than just age. Like they are not fully _there_ yet. And I couldn’t bear talking to the two of you like that.”

The Ponds sat quietly for a moment.

“I think I understand. But it sounds like that got away from you?” Amy said.

The Doctor cocked her head.

“I was just repeating something that someone else said…”

_Uh oh too vague._

Amy eyed her.

“Anyone we’ve met?”

The Doctor squirmed.

“Er, your daughter said it.”

The two of them sat up straight.

“You’ve seen River, recently? But she never mentioned…?”

The Doctor waved her hand.

“No, not this me. Previous version. You haven’t met him.”

Amy raised an eyebrow.

“He was a white-haired Scottsman.”

Amy looked positively gleeful at the prospect.

“Doctor, who was she talking about?”

Rory’s forehead was pinched when he asked the question. _Rassilon_ , thought the Doctor, _what had River told him?_

“Me, actually.” She really didn’t want to talk about that time at The Library anymore than she had already. But the two of them were pleading with her. She had never been able to resist either of them.

She sighed.

“This was back when River was meeting a younger version of me. It was the first time I met her- and that is all I will say on the subject.”

The two of them stared at her for a moment but seemed to realise that she wouldn’t relent.

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner? I understand why you didn’t then, but what about when we met in the pocket universe? When you told me your name was Jo?”

Hurt rang through Rory’s words. The Doctor fought not to fidget.

“Or after we thought you were dead? Why didn’t you come find us then? You tracked Rory down after Apalapucia, why not after Lake Silencio?” Amy looked aggrieved.

Thirteen looked down.

“I don’t really have a good reason for that. I could say that I was trying to preserve the timeline, but really… I was afraid.”

Amy stared at her, hard.

“What were you afraid of?”

The Doctor fiddled with her hands, and wished, for the millionth time, that timelords did not have such abnormal biology. It would make things far easier.

“Because Rory was upset that I didn’t like fish fingers and custard. Because meeting companions after I’ve regenerated doesn’t always end well. I’ve had some people outright call me a fraud, a friend of mine asked if I could switch back-”

“You were afraid we would reject you?”

Rory’s words were said so softly that the Doctor barely heard it. But she closed her eyes anyway.

_That had always been one of the Doctor’s worst fears._

“ _Can you change back?”_

 _“Not_ my _Doctor…”_

_“Some new man goes sauntering away… and I’m dead.”_

Her silence answered their question.

She lightly tapped her mug and wished she could fade into the couch. Just like the Aries, of the planet Stol who could walk through almost any material, if they so choose. Except for a special type of aluminium. That had been an interesting visit.

“Doctor that’s fucking ridiculous! You-“

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Amy reach for her arm.

The Doctor shrunk back, tried to make herself as small as possible and didn’t look at either Rory or Amy. No one moved for a moment.

Then Rory shifted until he was on the floor in front of her. He looked directly into her eyes.

“I’m sorry about the fish fingers. I was just surprised. You used to make them sound like Ambrosia of the gods.”

The Doctor snorted despite herself, breathed through her nose. Good old Rory.

“You didn’t like them when I first offered them.” She rasped. “I’m pretty sure you looked like I had served you dirt.”

Rory smiled.

“I remember.” He leaned back a tiny bit but made sure to maintain eye contact. Thirteen was a little surprised to see Amy let him take the lead on this.

“Doctor, I want you to know that we would never have rejected you. No matter what you look like, or the state of your taste buds. I’ve met this you a couple of times, and yes there are some differences.”

The Doctor snorted. Yes there always were. _Same software, different casing_. But Rory wasn’t finished.

“There are also lots of similarities. You are just as stubborn, just as ridiculous and we love you just as much as we ever did.”

Thirteen stared down at her hands, even as a tear slid down her cheek.

That word… no she would ignore it for now.

“But I- “she closed her eyes, then looked directly at Amy.

She remembered the woman that had confronted her on Apalapucia. Who had been _Amy_. Not the Amy she knew but still. Had Eleven ever talked about what happened with her? She didn’t think so.

“I was willing to let that version of you die to save _you_.” She choked on the last word. “She was her own person and I… didn’t care. Just like that Flesh version of you… All I cared about was you. And that’s not someone I have ever wanted to be.”

The tears were coming faster now. She ducked her head and wiped them.

When Amy’s voice came, it sounded much closer than before. Thirteen tensed slightly in response.

“I can’t speak for her. It wasn’t like I had two different versions of myself in my head. I do know that she had all of my memories. She loved Rory just as much as I do. But she also had to have cared for you as much as I do.”

Thirteen opened her mouth to protest, still not looking up at either of them.

“No Doctor. She did. Her attitude and sense of betrayal, that could only have come from love. And yes that could have been me. Yes, you made a mistake. You didn’t check to make sure it was safe. You didn’t wait for me before leaving the TARDIS. I wasn’t paying any attention to what was going on around me. You put Rory between a rock and a hard place… but I’m assuming you’ve already talked about it, right?”

“… Yeah we have,” said Rory.

“Doctor, can you look at me please?”

Thirteen took a deep breath, then looked up.

She remembered how angry that other Amy had been. With good reason but it still ached.

This Amy’s face was soft, and she was looking directly at Thirteen.

“I forgive you. But I need to you to promise me that you won’t let this sort of thing happen again. That you’ll check the TARDIS scanners before you leave…”

“And you’ll get your companions immunised before they go off-world,” interjected Rory, glaring.

Amy nodded in agreement.

“And don’t look at him like that. I know you have had companions after Rory and I left. You don’t do well without people.”

The Doctor tipped her head to the side as she thought over what Amy had said. It was much like the promise she had made to Rory. Thirteen thought about Yaz, Ryan and Graham. Of Clara. Of Bill. Of all the others who had had less than ideal fates. Why had they never done this?

Because they had always thought it was futile? Because no matter what they did it always ended badly?

_It doesn’t have to be that way…_

That voice sounded like a mix of Clara and Donna.

“I pro-“

But Amy held up a hand.

“I need you to swear to me on something that matters.”

The Doctor sighed, bowed her head.

“I swear to you… by fish fingers and custard, that I will do my best to ensure the safety of my companions at all times.”

There was a pause in which Amy smiled.

“You’d better, Rainbows.”

“Oi! That’s the nickname you’re going with?”

“Yep. Got a problem with that?”

Thirteen thought about it. There wasn’t really anything wrong with it. And Amy wasn’t to know, but this regeneration did seem to like rainbows a lot. They were just bright and colourful. Something about them made her feel really happy.

She shook her head in response to Amy’s question, even while trying to hide her smile.

Then Rory sighed.

“Give me your cup Doctor.”

Thirteen looked up at him in askance.

“Rory what-“

“You’ve barely touched it. How do you like your tea now?”

The Doctor shifted as she handed over the cup. She was not very good at being subtle.

“Uuuh, may I please have milk and two spoonsful of sugar, maybe a little cream if you have it?”

Rory nodded and walked out of the room. The Doctor would never have said, but she appreciated that Rory didn’t make a big deal out if it. 

It was just her and Amy now. The two of them stared at each other for a moment.

“So… what’s it like? For you I mean… being a woman?”

The Doctor waved a hand in front of her own face.

“It’s a bit different. I still catch myself forgetting sometimes.”

She shrugged.

“But for future reference, I do like being referred to with she/her pronouns.”

Amy nodded in response.

“Noted.”

“How are you doing Amy? How’s your modelling going?”

Amy tipped her head to the side but didn’t comment on the subject change.

“It’s going well. I guess I had always thought about doing it- just never got round to it. And then I finally applied and here we are.” She paused, then smiled self-deprecatingly. “I’ve never been very good at sticking with anything.”

Thirteen stared at her. She thought of a book in the TARDIS library that had a place of honour even now. _Summer Falls_ by Amy Williams. It was a book that the Doctor had read many, many times, cover to cover.

“Amy, your life has been a mess timeline wise. You can remember two very different childhoods. All that means is that you are adaptable, and you can do anything you put your mind to.”

There were tears in Amy’s eyes.

“Doctor, I-“ she paused. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Amy.”

Rory came in not long after that. He looked between the two of them but decided not to comment on Amy’s watery eyes. Instead he set the Doctor’s cup of tea on the table. The Doctor took it gratefully and was delighted to find that there was some cream in the cup.

The rest of the evening passed rather quickly after that. Before they knew it, they had all gone through two packets of biscuits (custard cream because they were the Doctor’s favourite), a frozen pizza and four cups of tea each.

They exchanged gossip, laughed about old stories and basked in each other’s presence. The Doctor didn’t want to leave. But she could see that Amy was nodding off, and Rory wouldn’t say so, but she knew he had an early shift tomorrow morning.

When it was time to go Rory said he would walk her back to the TARDIS. Thirteen offered to help with the dishes but Amy waved her off.

“Nah I got this. But it was lovely seeing you Doctor. Are you sure you can’t stay? We’ve got a spare bed that you’re more than welcome to.”

That was tempting. More tempting than Amy would ever know. But she was unsure on when precisely Eleven had taken them to the creepy 80s motel. It had to be soon. And she had no wish to be around when he showed up.

“No, thank you. But I appreciate the offer.”

Amy nodded as if she expected that. She shifted where she stood. The Doctor took a step forward and took Amy’s hands in hers.

“This version isn’t a huge fan of touch, hugs especially. It’s just another way to hide your face. But my affection for you has not changed Amy. I’m just expressing it differently.”

She stared at the Doctor closely. Then smiled.

“I did know that, but I’m glad to hear you say so.”

Thirteen squeezed her mother-in-law’s hands. She was glad she hadn’t screwed that up.

“Goodbye, Pond.”

She made to let go of Amy, but the other woman gripped her hands tighter and gently spun her back.

“Will we see you again?”

_“If I’m lucky…”_

Thirteen thought about it. The Doctor had said that several life-times ago. And at the time, Ten had not expected to see Donna again. He had been proved wrong. Many times over in fact. Donna had been one of their best friends.

And in light of the promises she had made to the pair of them, she felt she owed them this. They wouldn’t get stuck in the past for another 8 years, perhaps she would see them again.

“You know I can never say for certain. But I have been wrong before, and you know how much I love being wrong.”

She winked at the pair of them.

Amy smiled sadly, but she let the Doctor’s hands go.

“Don’t be a stranger,” Amy said stridently. “You ever need to crash here just let us know, yeah?”

Now the Doctor was struggling not to cry.

She nodded.

“I will. See you around, Pond.”

Rory and the Doctor walked away. Thirteen didn’t look back, but she could have sworn that Amy’s eyes followed her all the way down the street.

Neither of them said much. After the day they had had there wasn’t really much to say.

At the TARDIS Rory squeezed the Doctor’s hands.

“See you later Doctor. You have my number, so you can’t use that as an excuse.”

“Would I do that?”

Rory just stared at her.

After a moment, Thirteen shrugged.

“Don’t worry Rory, you won’t have to put my name in a corn field. I’ll call you, see how you’re doing.”

“You’d better.”

“Bye, Rory.”

Rory squeezed her hands once more, then turned to leave.

But Thirteen called him back at the last moment. 

“Rory?”

“What? Thought you had to run.”

“I do, but there is one more thing. I’ve enjoyed our talks. I really have. However… maybe next time we shouldn’t meet in a bar. Sets a bad precedent you know.”

Rory eyed her then shook his head.

“If it makes you feel better I’ve only been to a bar 4 times in as many years. I’m doing fine.”

“All the same…” she trailed off, looked at him imploringly.

He cocked his head.

“Alright, I promise. No more drunken stupors.” He said dramatically: “can’t promise anything about bars.”

The Doctor nodded. That was probably the best she would get.

“Alright. Goodbye Pond.”

“See you around, Doctor. And stay out of trouble!”

He waved, then headed home.

When he was out of earshot, Thirteen whispered with some finality: “Goodbye, Dad.”

* * *

It takes quite a while for the Doctor to enter the TARDIS, and even longer for her to manoeuvre the ship into the time vortex. Thirteen lets the TARDIS float and tries to let her mind do the same. But her thoughts will not rest and she gives it up after a moment.

She stands outside the door to her bedroom. Inside the room is spacious yet understated, barely any furniture except a bed.

The backwall of her room is covered in small snap shots of their companions over time. It was so full that she wondered how they all stayed up sometimes. Maybe the TARDIS had something to do with it. Honestly, Thirteen wouldn’t put it past her.

She feels dead on her feet and she’s not entirely sure why but resolves to sort it out in the morning.

The Doctor fell sleep to the soothing thrum of the TARDIS.

Memories crept into her dreams. Memories that perplexed her because she was sure that hadn’t happened the first time round.

_Eleven watches as Rory enters the TARDIS. The Doctor hasn’t seen him since Apalapucia. When Rory had been seething with rage. At the way Eleven had treated the older Amy. At the situation in general. The Doctor wondered how he can ever mend this rift._

_But now there is something in his eyes. Something light, something that seems a little bit… different. A resolution that was not there before._

_Rory went to the Doctor, who tenses at his approach. Because even though it’s deserved, the Doctor doesn’t really like getting punched. Especially when it’s done by someone they care about._

_“Rory, what…”_

_But Rory is unexpected in all things. The Doctor kept forgetting that._

_He wraps his arms around the Doctor._

_And he whispers; “I’m still pissed. So pissed. But I want to talk to you about why. I want you to understand… And I want you to know that I forgive you.”_

The Doctor smiled as she rolled over in her sleep.


End file.
